Louis Gabriel de Contades, Marquis de Contades-Gizeux (11 October 1759 – 18 June 1825) was a French aristocrat, soldier, and politician.

Early life

Contades was born on 11 October 1759 in

Angers Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...

, the prefecture of the

Maine-et-Loire Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...

department. He was the second son of Julie Victoire Constantin de La Lorie, Dame du Plantis (1739–1828) and Georges-Gaspard de Contades,

Marquis de Contades Marquis de Contades (, ) was a title created for the Contades family, which had first been ennobled in 1619. History The Contades family is a French noble family, originally from Béarn, which settled in Narbonne in the fifteenth century, before ...

(1726–1794), a member of the

Académie des sciences The French Academy of Sciences (, ) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific method, scientific research. It was at the forefron ...

. Among his siblings were

Erasmus-Gaspard de Contades Erasmus-Gaspard de Contades, comte de Contades et de l'Empire (12 March 1758 – 9 November 1834) was a French aristocrat, politician, and Lieutenant-General of the King's Armies. Early life Contades was born on 12 March 1758 in Angers, the pref ...

and

François-Jules de Contades François-Jules-Gaspard de Contades, Vicomte de Contades (29 December 1760 – 3 September 1811) was a French aristocrat and soldier who was known as the Chevalier de Contades. Early life Contades was born on 29 December 1760 in Angers, the prefec ...

, Vicomte de Contades. His paternal grandfather was

Louis Georges Érasme de Contades Louis Georges Érasme de Contades, Marquis de Contades (; 19 October 1704 – 19 January 1795), Seigneur de Montgeoffroy, was a Marshal of France and a major battlefield commander during the Seven Years' War. He notably commanded the French force ...

, a prominent battlefield commander during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

who was made a

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

Career

He began as a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

in the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

before becoming Second Lieutenant in the Royal Corps of Artillery on 20 April 1776, before being made

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the Piémont in April 1778. In 1780, he was made a Lieutenant-Colonel, followed by Colonel in the

Gendarmerie A gendarmerie () is a paramilitary or military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (). In France and so ...

in January 1784. He was presented to the King at

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

in 1787 under the title of Marquis de Gizeux. In March 1782, he was made second colonel of the Anjou-infantry regiment before becoming a colonel of the regiment in May 1791. In 1791, during the French Revolution, he joined the

Armée des Émigrés The Armée des Émigrés ( English: ''Army of the Émigrés'') were counter-revolutionary armies raised outside France by and out of royalist émigrés, with the aim of overthrowing the First French Republic and restoring the monarchy. These we ...

, a

counter-revolutionary A counter-revolutionary or an anti-revolutionary is anyone who opposes or resists a revolution, particularly one who acts after a revolution has occurred, in order to try to overturn it or reverse its course, in full or in part. The adjective "c ...

armies raised outside France by and out of

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social exile or self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French verb ''émigrer'' meaning "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Hugueno ...

s, with the aim of overthrowing the French Revolution, reconquering France and restoring the monarchy. He took part in the campaign of 1792. In 1794, he emigrated to

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

, where he commanded a legion of the Royal Army (supported by

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

). He was promoted to

Maréchal de camp ''Maréchal de camp'' (sometimes incorrectly translated as field marshal) was a general officer rank used by the French Army until 1848. The rank originated from the older rank of sergeant major general ( French: ''sergent-major général'') ...

on 27 December 1795.

First French Empire

Contades became Chamberlain to Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

and was made

Baron of the Empire As Emperor of the French, Napoleon I created titles in a newly established ' (imperial nobility) to institute a stable elite in the First French Empire, after the instability resulting from the French Revolution. Like many others, both befo ...

in 1813. He served as Lieutenant-General of the King's Armies and mayor of

Gizeux Gizeux () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Population The inhabitants are called ''Gizellois'' in French. See also *Communes of the Indre-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 272 communes of ...

. He was general councilor of

Indre-et-Loire Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River. In 2019, it had a population of 610,079.

Personal life

On 17 October 1786, Contades married Périne-Julie Constantin de La Lorie (1767–1840). The Marquis owned the

Château de Gizeux A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking reg ...

, in

in the

Indre-et-Loire Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River. In 2019, it had a population of 610,079.département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

, but had to flee in 1789, returning to Gizeux in 1801. Together, they were the parents of four children, three daughters and one son: * Julie Louise Marie de Contades-Gizeux (1787–1860), who married René de la Rue du Can, Baron de Champchevrier of the

Château de Champchevrier A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking reg ...

. * Henriette de Contades-Gizeux (1789–1840), who married Alexandre Nicolas Bunault, Comte de Montbrun. * Camille-Auguste de Contades-Gizeux (1791–1861), a Captain of Chasseurs who married Elisa du Fou in 1818. * Aimé de Contades-Gizeux (1802–1802), who died in infancy. Contades died in Gizeux on 18 June 1825, and was buried in the Cemetery of the Church of Gizeux. His widow died in

Tours Tours ( ; ) is the largest city in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabita ...

in 1840.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Contades, Louis Gabriel De 1759 births 1825 deaths Marquesses of Contades Barons of the First French Empire Order of Saint Louis recipients French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars